Spain Flooding Delays, Cancels Barcelona Flights
by Briana Bonfiglio
Flooding in Valencia. Photo: Fernando Astasio Avila / Shutterstock.com
Massive flooding that began on Oct. 29 and killed at least 217 people in eastern Spain continues to have major impacts in the region.
The worst of the disaster – and most of the deaths – have occurred in Valencia, about 200 miles southwest of Barcelona. Protests have also erupted there over the slow government response to the crisis.
Heavy rains are now traveling north to Barcelona, and already the Barcelona-El Prat International Airport (BCN) is partially flooded, according to Reuters.
Airport operator AENA said that 17 inbound flights have been diverted and at least 50 departures have been canceled by the airlines, with more being delayed.
“The Airport has set up its Crisis Committee to constantly monitor the impact of the strong storms that also affect some areas of the terminals where there have been some [flooding], mainly in the public area of Terminal 1 and in the car park,” AENA said in an alert on its website.
According to FlightAware, 43% of flights (212) were delayed and 8% canceled (43) as of 11:30 a.m. Most of Barcelona’s bus and train transportation is also suspended due to the storm.
